10 original Inferences questions, easiest first. Complete the text with the conclusion it most logically forces. Answer them all, then submit once to see every answer explained.
When a popular rideshare app introduced a lower-cost carpooling option, requests for its standard, non-shared rides dropped noticeably in the weeks that followed, but total combined ride requests across both options remained roughly the same as before the carpooling option was introduced.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
A — many riders who previously chose the standard option switched to the new carpooling option rather than requesting more rides overall.. Standard ride requests dropping while total combined requests stayed the same suggests riders shifted from one option to the other rather than the overall market growing or shrinking, supporting choice A.
In a controlled taste test, participants rated an unfamiliar sauce more favorably when it was described as a 'family recipe passed down for generations' than when the identical sauce was described using its plain ingredient list.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
A — the story attached to a food may influence how people perceive its taste.. Since the sauce was identical in both conditions but ratings differed based only on the description used, this implies the narrative framing itself influenced perceived taste—matching choice A. Choice D is directly contradicted since the sauce was identical yet rated differently.
A study found that customers who browsed a clothing retailer's app using a smaller phone screen spent less time viewing each product page but ultimately completed purchases at a similar rate to customers browsing on larger screens, even though both groups saw the same product catalog and pricing.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
D — screen size alone may not be the primary factor determining a customer's likelihood of completing a purchase.. Since purchase completion rates were similar despite different browsing behavior across screen sizes, this suggests screen size itself isn't the deciding factor in purchase likelihood—matching choice D logically without the overstatements in B or C.
A survey of remote employees found that those who took a short walk immediately before joining video meetings reported significantly less self-rated fatigue afterward than those who did not, even after accounting for total daily meeting hours and sleep duration.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
C — a brief pre-meeting walk, not just meeting hours or sleep, may influence post-meeting fatigue.. Since meeting hours and sleep duration were controlled for, but walking still mattered, this points to the walk itself—not just those other factors—as influencing fatigue, matching choice C.
In a laboratory experiment, plants grown under intermittent light exposure—several short light periods separated by darkness—produced more biomass than genetically identical plants grown under a single continuous light period of the same total duration.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
A — total light duration alone may not fully determine plant growth outcomes.. Since total light duration was the same but the pattern of exposure (intermittent vs. continuous) changed the outcome, this suggests factors beyond total duration—like light pattern—matter, supporting choice A.
A wildlife biologist tracking a population of urban squirrels found that squirrels living closer to busy roadways had shorter average lifespans than squirrels living in quieter park areas farther from roads, despite having easier access to discarded food overall.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
C — easier access to food does not necessarily correspond to better survival outcomes for urban wildlife.. Despite having easier food access, the roadside squirrels had shorter lifespans, implying that greater access to food doesn't guarantee better survival—likely due to traffic-related risks—matching choice C directly.
In a controlled taste test, participants rated an unfamiliar vegetable dish more favorably when it was described as 'herb-roasted' than when the identical dish was described using its plain ingredient list.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
C — the way a dish is described may influence how people perceive its taste.. Since the dish was identical in both conditions but ratings differed based only on the description used, this implies the description itself influenced perceived taste—matching choice C. Choice B is directly contradicted since the dish was identical yet rated differently.
A researcher comparing two groups of chess players found that players who regularly reviewed their own past losing games improved their tournament rating faster over a year than players who spent an equal amount of study time reviewing games played by grandmasters.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
A — analyzing one's own mistakes may be a more effective study method than studying the games of expert players.. Since study time was equal between groups but the type of study differed in effectiveness, this suggests the specific method (reviewing own losses) may be more effective, matching choice A without overstating that grandmaster study is worthless (choice C).
A city's traffic engineers found that intersections with leading pedestrian intervals, which give pedestrians a few seconds' head start before vehicles get a green light, had fewer pedestrian-vehicle collisions than similar intersections without such intervals, even though both types of intersections had comparable vehicle and pedestrian volume.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
A — the timing design of a traffic signal may improve pedestrian safety independent of overall traffic volume.. Since both vehicle and pedestrian volume were comparable between the two intersection types, the difference in collisions is more likely linked to the signal timing design itself, supporting choice A. Choice D is an overstatement not supported by 'fewer' collisions, which doesn't mean zero.
A survey of remote workers found that those who maintained a strict, consistent start and end time for their workday reported significantly less difficulty falling asleep than those whose work hours varied unpredictably from day to day, even after accounting for total hours worked.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
D — the predictability of a work schedule, not just the total amount of work, may influence sleep quality.. Since total hours worked was controlled for, but predictability still mattered, this points to schedule consistency itself—not just workload—as a factor influencing sleep, matching choice D.
Score:
Every question above is now marked up: the correct answer is highlighted, any wrong option you picked is flagged, and each explanation is open.
No. Every question here is original, written to the College Board's published Digital SAT Reading & Writing specification for the Inferences skill. No retired or copyrighted College Board material appears anywhere on this site.
Inferences gives you a passage ending in a blank, usually after a phrase like "therefore" or "this suggests that", and asks which choice most logically completes it. The answer is not stated in the passage, but it must follow from the passage alone.
Read to the blank and finish the thought yourself before looking at the choices. Then apply one test to each choice: could this be false while everything in the passage is true? If yes, it is not the inference. The correct answer is usually the most cautious of the four, because it is the only one the text fully guarantees.
No, and deliberately so. This drill is 10 Inferences questions back to back; a real Reading & Writing module is 27 questions in 32 minutes drawn from all eleven skills. Use a drill to fix one weakness, then take a full module to practice the real thing.
No. The SAT has no penalty for a wrong answer — a blank and a wrong guess both score zero — so answer every question, including the ones you have to guess.